Friday, December 27, 2013

Betty and I lived in the same BOQ building, and she is the one who made all the arrangements and moved my belongings onto base while I was on vacation. She was a great friend and a lot of fun.

In 1980, Betty and I planned a Christmas trip to the Philippines and arranged for travel orders (TO). With the TOs we were eligible to travel on military planes on a stand-by basis. We got to Yokota AFB near Tokyo without any problem, but from there to Clark AFB in the Philippines only one seat was available. Betty told me to go on that flight, find a place for us to stay in base billeting and meet her at the airport the next day. It sounded pretty easy, so I flew ahead.

When I tried to arrange for billeting, I was surprised there was nothing available on-base due to a large training exercise and numerous airmen on temporary duty. Plan B was to find a place to stay off-base: that would have worked except, it was quite a distance. Plan C was to cry and beg the billeting officer to give us something (anything) on-base. Another teacher was traveling on to Guam and needed a place as well, so we cajoled the billeting officer in assigning us a trailer in a section of the base where married couples could stay. The trailer was a dump, but it was better than nothing. My "roommate's" plane left early the next morning, so I didn't even have a chance to say good-bye or to thank her for helping me find a place to stay.

I met Betty at the airport, and we settled into the tiny trailer for the week. We shopped off-base and on-base, and Betty found many treasures. The photo at the top of this post show the massive pile of boxes she shipped back to Misawa.

I purchased a double rocker made out of rattan. The shopkeeper assured me it could be disassembled and packaged in a box that could would be allowed on the returning plane.

Note to self: shopkeepers will say anything to make a sale.

When I returned to pick up the packaged rocker, I discovered it was huge! I was wracked with anxiety that the package would NEVER be accepted on the plane. The day of our departure, my fear was confirmed; however, the kind airman told me to ask the flight crew directly because they are allowed larger packages. Soooo, Betty and I schlepped the package (actually an awkward box) to the flight line, and I begged the crew to put the package on board the C-130, which they kindly did.

The C-130 is a massive plane, with a ramp in the back to allow large equipment to be driven on board. Sling or fold-down seats are arranged along the sides of the aircraft. Strips of regular airline seats were bolted in the planes to allow for more comfortable flying. The noise level in the large open aircraft is terrible, and everyone was issued earplugs upon boarding. C-130s were the primary transportation on most of my flights from base to base.

Betty did not like to fly and immediately fell asleep. Mid-flight, one of the kind crew members came and asked if I wanted to sit in the cockpit. What a fabulous experience, and one that I regret not having my camera handy. We were flying above the clouds, and the view was simply that - beautiful, fluffy clouds - it was breath-taking.

I returned to my seat when we began to experience turbulence. The passengers were told we would have to land at Kadena AFB on Okinawa due to high winds. That's when the grumbling began. Cranky, cranky people took their frustration out on the crew when we landed. Everyone was taken to the billet office and given a room for the night. The winds continued into the next day and the grumbling became worse because we could not fly.

Finally, we were given the go-ahead for travel on to Yokota AFB.

All the flights to Misawa were full, so Betty and I spent three additional days as well as Christmas in Yokota billeting.

When we were finally cleared to catch a flight back to Misawa, I had to once again beg a different flight crew to accept my bulky package. This crew was not as eager to transport the package, but they finally relented when I pointed out that the other crew had graciously allowed it onboard; however, my lovely rocker had become a millstone.

Mom and Brenda in the infamous rattan rockerapprox. 1986

I no longer have the rocker because Wyoming's dry climate is not favorable to rattan furniture, but I couldn't help but think about the helpful crew and the beautiful view from the cockpit when I used the rocker in my home for nearly 10 years.

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Last week, I received a package from Nancy H. in WA, containing Stars of Valor, quilted, labeled and bound. Thank you, Nancy for being so generous with your time and talents during this busy season, and thanks to Pam for directing Nancy to my blog.

I laundered the quilt and made a pillow case out of similar fabric. On Wednesday, the quilt and case were delivered to Sheep Camp Quilts: the State QOV coordinator (Stephanie Logan) owns the shop and accepts the quilts for later distribution.

Monday, December 23, 2013

Mom adds tinsel to the Christmas tree - one strand at a time.approx. 1969

I was thrilled to find some photos of my mother decorating the Christmas tree. She loved Christmas and took great pride the placement of the tinsel. I have no idea how many hours it took her to carefully place the icicles on the tree. The tinsel icicles were crinkled and not the straight, slippery ones sold today. Note that some of the glass ornaments can be seen on the upper branches.

Mom added the tinsel from the bottom of the tree to top. In this photo she is nearing the top of the tree.

I have no idea why the tree in the center of the room in this photo other than it was probably easier to work on the whole tree. The decorated tree was always positioned by the windows to my mother's right where the beige rocking chair can be seen.

The decorated tree must have been carefully maneuvered to itsspot in front of the window. Note the aluminum foil on the TV rabbit ears in the lower left corner. The Santa on the middle shelf was given to my mom. It was made from a hurricane lamp glass chimney, and the base was a tuna can, covered with red felt. Most crafts, made in the late 60s and early 70s were made with felt.

While I love today's Christmas decorations and trees, I would love to see another tree decorated with individual, tinsel icicles. I didn't put up a tree this year, but when I do, I use individual glass icicles.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

I think the name of this melodrama was Wildcat Katie Brown, but I'm not sure. This was the second or third play that I helped Nancy stage with the members of the community, who were known as the Pavillion Players.

Pavillion Players

As shown above, the first melodramas were held in the town park in a large, striped tent rented from Tom Youtz Ford. One night a wind storm nearly lifted the tent off the ground, and had people not held the tent poles it probably would have taken flight. Eventually, the plays were staged at Wind River High School.

The plays and an accompanying meal were usually presented two nights. One year, the food was served in pie pans that my sister Marilyn borrowed from Marie Callender's Restaurant in Denver.

Nancy found caterers for the events, and the cast sold tickets. One year, the proceeds were used to purchase stage lights for the high school drama program.

Another time, I used the PageMaker computer program to layout the play program like an old-fashioned newspaper, and we had it printed on newsprint at the Riverton Ranger (newspaper) office.

Working on these productions and with the Pavillion Players was a lot of fun.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

I can't recall the exact year that my sisters, my niece and I travelled to Frankenmuth, MI, but I am almost certain it in was in the early 90s.

Frankenmuth is a tourist town, known as Little Bavaria and a lot of fun to explore. One store, Bonner's CHRISTmas Wonderland, is massive (the grounds cover 27 acres) and has every type of ornament, light, or decoration that you can imagine. There is even a Silent Night chapel, a replica of the original Silent Night memorial chapel in Austria.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

This fragile ornament is one of my favorites: I love the color and the peaceful scene on its surface, and I've photographed it many times over the years.

When I was growing up, the boxes of Christmas decorations were stored in the attic, a large unfinished space that was cold in the winter and could only be accessed through a small opening in the hallway ceiling just outside the bathroom door. Getting the boxes down from the attic was always the exciting beginning of the holiday and required a ladder: some years a straight ladder was brought into the house, but eventually, a step ladder was used. When the garage was built in the 70s, the tattered boxes were stored on the shelves and carried into the house. Storing the boxes in the garage made getting them easier, but it took some of the anticipation out of the process.

Even though some ornaments were never used, my mother kept them in the boxes, and each year, we sorted through the collection housed in the containers.

Opening the boxes of decorations was exciting and memorable. The tattered boxes contained a mixture of old and new: red and kinky, celluloid garland too old to use but never thrown away; dull-red, glass ornaments (the size of large grapefruit) that no longer had metal tops for hanging; boxes of glass ornaments of various sizes, some with stripes, some with paint, some plain; plastic prancing reindeer with broken legs and a plastic horn that had long ago lost its noise maker - despite their broken state, they were propped on the evergreen branches; ceramic ornaments (Raggedy Ann and Andy - see next photo) that my sister painted with each grandchild's name. Selecting fragile treasures from the boxes, my mother transformed the tree to a thing of beauty each year.

Marilyn painted a Raggedy Ann for each granddaughter and a RaggedyAndy for each grandson. The ornaments hung on Grandma Rosie's treefor many years. (photo taken approximately 1975)

Out of all my mother's ornaments, the blue one shown in the top photo was my favorite. I searched the tree each year until I found it, tucked near the truck. When my mother died, it was the ornament that I wanted for my own tree. It is now stored in a different box in the guest bedroom closet along with my eclectic ornament collection: Hallmark ornaments, travel souvenirs, bead garland, and a turkey wishbone. It is the ornament that I treasure the most and the presently the only traditional ornament I own.

Connie (Far Side of Fifty) has quite a collection of traditional and authentic Shiny Brite ornaments. Even though Connie has photos of her exclusive Shiny Brite tree on her blog, I would love to see it in person.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

This summer, Sheila spotted this one at the Lander hospital. We had just finished visiting a friend who was in the ICU when Sheila pointed to the phone tucked in a small cubby hole. It's a good thing Sheila has sharp eyes and that my cell phone is capable of taking photos, or I would have missed documenting this vanishing American icon.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

I can't remember when the Fremont County dairymen joined the Mountain Empire Dairymen Association (MEDA), but it was some time in the mid to late 60s. Dairy herds were common and numerous in Fremont County at that time. In the 50s and early 60s, the milk was trucked and processed and distributed by the Morning Star Dairy in Riverton.

Milk in the bulk tanks was tested before being picked up by the truck driver. Note in the photo below the driver has a sample bag in his right hand. If a producer's milk did not pass the inspection, the entire tank was dumped or arrangements were made for it to be sold to a cheese manufacturer in Afton, WY. I don't remember any of our milk being dumped or sold for cheese.

With so many dairies in Fremont County, milk was in surplus, so the local producers and those from Park County joined MEDA, which included Colorado dairy farms. Fremont and Park County dairies transported milk to Denver twice a week, a one-way journey of 366 miles from Riverton and 513 miles from Powell. The cost of transport was deducted from the farmer's checks. When the Morning Star Dairy closed, all the milk was trucked to Denver.

Dean visits with Rich (my brother) while the milk is pumped into the
truck. Note the hose from the truck going into a small door in the barn
wall. That hose was attached to the bulk milk tank inside the barn. The
spiral wire plugged into the barn outlet is for the truck's electric pump.
Dean is holding a milk sample in his right hand: milk in the bulk tanks
was tested for quality and butter fat content and the price paid for the
milk was determined by those tests.

Dean was one of the drivers who picked up milk from the farm. Two different trucks were used, one with a semi trailer tank and one with a fixed tank.

Fixed tank milk truck
(Penny on barn step)
approximately 1978

Usually, the truck picked up the milk from the surrounding farms and headed for Denver after the last farm on the route. My mom and brother did not want to cause any delays in that schedule and sometimes pushed up the start of milking a bit on the days the milk truck was expected.

When I read that Dean recently passed away, I searched for photos of him and the truck, and was pleased to find the ones in this post.